Britain's new notes are resistant to dirt and moisture, and unlike paper notes, they suffer little effect from going through a washing machine cycle, although they can be damaged by ironing, tests have shown.

Bank bosses also said polymer can incorporate better security features than paper notes and that they are much more slow, expensive and complicated to counterfeit.

Another benefit of polymer currency is that it lasts at least two-and-a-half times times longer than paper, so will take much longer to become tatty.

A public consultation, including events at shopping centres across the UK, gave people a chance to handle the notes.

The Bank found 87% of 13,000 individuals were in favour of polymer.

Dated: The days of paper bank notes like these are numbered (Image: Getty Images)

2. It will feature Sir Winston Churchill on one side and the Queen on the other side. It will be issued in 2016

3. The £10 note will feature Jane Austen and will be in circulation in 2017

4. Bank of England research has shown that plastic notes stay cleaner for longer, are more difficult to counterfeit and last 2.5 times longer than paper

5. A public consultation found that 87% of the 13,000 people who responded were in favour of the plastic notes

6. Innovia Security are set to supply the polymer material for the notes. They are expected to set up a polymer production plant in Wigton, Cumbria. The notes will still be printed at the Bank's printing works in Debden, Essex

7. The notes are more expensive to produce than paper ones. However, they should provide more cost-effective as they last longer

8. People who handle the notes are 20% more likely to support them than people who merely see pictures of them on the internet

9. This is the first time the Bank of England has used plastic notes in its 300-year history

10. More than 25 countries currently issue polymer banknotes, including Australia - which began printing them in 1988 - as well as New Zealand, Mexico, Singapore, Canada and, most recently, Fiji and Mauritius